Machine for making slivers or rovings



l Feb. 24, 1942. 1 P. MILLER 2,274,423 MACHINE IFOR MAKING sLIvERs 0RRovINGs 2 Filed June 12, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR M ATTORNEYS Feb.24, 1942. Y ALF.f1|L.1' ER- f 2,274,423

Y MACHINE vFOR MAKING sLIvERs 0R RovINGs d Filed June., 12, 1940 Y 5sheets-sheet s ATTORNEYS Feb. 24, 1942'. l., P. MILLER l 2,274,423

MACHINE FOR MAKING SLIVERS OR ROVINGS INVENTOR Feb.24, 1942. l., MILLEARV 2,274,423

MACHINE FOR MAKING SLIVERS OR ROVINGS Filed June 12, 1940 5 sheets-sheers /C/WJ ATTORNEYS Patented Feb, 24, 1942 MACHINE `Foa MAmNGffsLrvEn'son'A .-xnovllvos A Louis P, Millenv''rooklyn, N. xfassignor toMiller-Jonas HoldifngCm'Ixic lWalden, N. Y., a corporation ofNew York iApplication June 1a 1940, serial No; 349,050l

19 claims] (c1. lei-150) .i e n Lsuch forr'xrasr to enable the sliver tobe utilized "The present invention relates to'the artf'of' textiles andmore'especially to that brancheof textiles dealing with the productionof slivers` Y or rovings.` e

More especially the presentinvention relates.

to mechanisms for producing slivers or rovings from "f ur orcther'text-ile fibers which are of such nature as-to be very diicult'tohandle in machines heretofore available inthe art. i j rThe presentVinventionl comprises broadly mechanisms to make rovings from' a supplyof proper uniformv lap or batt of textile bers, suchv as :fur or otherslippery textile material which does nottend to cohere leasily together.y f Preferably, the mechanism for producing the sliver or roving, 'fromthe uniform lap or batt,

comprises a plurality of stretched bands of steel set edgewise so as'toforma table or bed.` These bands may be used to divide a lap orlbattinto a plurality ofseparated elongated masses of textile iibers whichmay be fed by suitablel con- 'Veyors to Va condensermechanism wheretheAV Preferably, the band tableis inclinedv to the 35.

horizontal and the material is fedv to the upper end of the inclined bedor table. This inclination plus the Weight of the oncoming materiaLaconbands causes the 'material to move vdownward lengthwise of the bands.Duringthe movement of vthe material lengthwise of the bands, it iscontinually being subjected to the mechanical effectsdue to vibrationand air currents'produced by the vibrating .bands soas 'to tend toorient the fibers. This vtreatment continues until the loose materialhas moved downward be- 7 tween the bands into a zone of relativelysmallvibration atwhich time the material has become suiilciently compacted totend to drop away i from the vibrating bands as Aslivers or'rovings.

vIt is now picked up byv suitable conveyor belts which carrytheindividual slivers to condensing mechanism, well knownA and common inthe art for treating slivers, to condense the same into 55 bands havingtheir edges tensioned differently,

' VeyOIbeneaththe.bands, andv vibration of the in other textileoperations for Awhich slivers are adapted." 5 i' 'The bands, 4with"verylittle vibration, will act as 'lap `dividers,hb1.it `the 'mosteffective operation of the present ,invention .dependsiupon substantialvibration'to the bands and in order that thisy vibration may besatisfactorily produced, 'it is desirable that the steel bands be'provided with suitable tensioning'apparatus whereby the bands may beplaced under stress best suitedforthe particular period of vibrationthat-has been chosen. Since sixty cycles per lsecondl is a commonelectrical current, it is Aconvenient to stressthe bands'to be inharmony withsixty vibrations per second, and then vibrate or oscillatethe bands by means of asuitable electrical .vibrator energized byv asixty cycle alternating current. A vibrator that is la commercialproductand is satisfactory forthis purpose is known as the Syntron vibratorwhich, when energized, by

a sixty cyclel current, produces sixty Vvibrations per second.

In o rder to obtain .the twisting oroseiuanng eecton the steel bands, itis desirableto posi tively drive. each edge of eachrband transversely fof its length by separate vibratorspin other words, at a suitable pointin the length of the bands, each bottom edgerof each band is connectedwith a vibrator, preferably'mounted on one side `of the machine,4 andythetopvedge of each band is also connected with Aa suitable drive to avibrator preferably mounted on the opposite yside of the machine or bed.Thesevibrators are so electrically. connected as-tocause one to pull itsrespective band edgesinone direction while the. other is pullingfitsrespective bandedges `in the opposite:jdirection.,.: r

A construction which lfunctionssatisfactoril 0 comprises steel bandsmade of spring steel and beingof a length ofr substantially eighty-fourAinches from anchorage' to anchorage, one `and one-half inches ;wide. and'twenty-five; thousubstantially one inchapart andare; inclined atAsubstantially'l" to the horizontal. The tensioning members for thebands` preferably comprise devices whereby ahigher tension, may beapplied toene kedge of the band Ithanto the 0 other. Preferably, thebands are tensioned with intermediate band is stretchedV with one `edge`slightly tensioned more than the other. Y In the sandths of an inchthick. These bands arev spaced edge to have less amplitude of freeVibration so that the neutral axis of free vibration is not in thecenter of such an unevenly tensioned band. By this arrangement ofunevenly tensioning the bands, the vibration is so controlled as toposition the material between the bands so as to cause the formation ofthe roving or sliver to be controlled. -For example, with alternatebands-havingl highly tensioned upper edges, there is a tendency of thematerial to be thrownv downwardly relatively to the band table and thistype off tensioning is desirable where the lap or batt is fed to the topof the band table. Where the lower edges of the alternate bands aretensioned higher, there is a tendency of the vibrating bands to pick upthe xvnateriall from beneath the band table and this type of tensioningis particularly desirable where the lap or batt is under-fed to the bandtable.

Another factor in control of the vibrating bands is mass; and thevibrating mass may be suitable positions on the bands. It is to beunderstood.that these weights should preferably be outsideof the zone oftravel of thertextile material between the bands.

Preferably the material is fed vto the sliver or roving former from thelap or batt former, such as used in the textile art, which may be in theform Yof a machine known as a .blowen It vis desirable that the lastunit or stage in the lap former or blower which controls the feed ofmaterial from the former or blower shall be of a variable speed controlrelative to thel preceding units of this machine in order that thethickness of the lap fed in a given time from thebatt or lap former orblower to they sliver maker may be under the control of the operator andin this way, the size ofthe slivers produced may be controlled-or variedas the operator desires.

A more detailed description of the present invention will now be givenby reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrate more or lessdiagrammatically a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Likecharacters are used to designate like parts throughout the severalfigures of the drawings.

Fig. l-a and Fig. l-b represent a diagrammatic view illustrating in afabricating line an automatic weighing machine of the Bramwell typefeeding a lap or batt forming machine which supplies material insuitable form to the sliver or roving machine from which the rovings areconveyed to a condenser from which the nished roving is lead to suitablewinding appara- `tus where it is spooled or otherwise packaged forsubsequent treatment. Y

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the sliverV or roving maker shown in Fig. l--b.`1

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken online 3 3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a detailed View partly in section illustrating the tensioningdevices for a vibrating band.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of one pair `of bands illustrated in Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 illustrates the connection between the bands and the vibratorrod.

Fig. 7 illustrates a preferred form of load for the vibrating bands.Y

f Fig. 8 also illustrates a load for the bands.

Fig. 9 illustrates diagrammatically an velecaxis of oscillation of eachalternate band being ythere is a Vtendency for the higher tensionedtrical circuit for connecting Syntron" vibrators with the device.

Fig. 10 illustrates a band and shows the capability of adjusting thevibrating members lengthwise of the band to position the wavesrelatively to the length of the bands.

Fig. l1 is'a diagrammatic view illustrating the axis of oscillation asbeing raisedV on each alternate band due4 to manner of tuning.

Fig. 12 is a view similar to Fig. 11 showing the l lowered.

Fig. 13 is a diagrammatic plan `detail view of Y the top rovingcarriertransfer mechanism be- ,Y denser.

subsequent operations. changed or controlled by applying weights in vReferring now to the drawings and more especially kto Fig. li-a, thematerial, which may be rabbit fur or other suitable material, is dumpedinto the weighing machine A which predetermines the weight of thematerial being fed for This weighing machine Ais of a type wellV knownin the art as Bramwell and isY therefore familiar to those skilled inthe art and needs no further description.

The material from the weighing machine A is fed into the lap or battforming mechanism B, which may be in accordance with the diagrammaticillustrationk in Figs. l--a and 1-b. The material from the weighingmachine A drops on a conveyor apron I which conducts the same to a pairof feed rollers 4. Asthe material is carried through the feed rollers,it is engaged by a rapidly revolving picker cylinder 5 which dispersesthe material in an air'stream produced by the rapidly revolving cylinderand throws it against a screen or perforated drum 6. A conveyor belt 1is positioned beneath the screen drum 6 in such manner that the upperrun of this belt is practically in contact with the lower portion of thescreen drum 6. A baffle plates extends from the upper member of the pairof feed rollers 4 over the rapidly revolving picker cylinder 5 tosubstantially in contact with the rotating screen drum 6 and anadjustable damper 9 may be provided adjacent the forward end of aconveyor belt 1. The purpose of the baille plate 8 and the adjustabledamper 9 is to control the air currents around and produced by therapidly revolving picker cylinder 5 in such manner as to cause theI airto pass through the adjacent Wall of the drum 6 and thus cause thetextile or fur material to be thrown by the picker cylinder against thelower portion of the screen drum 6 from which the material is depositedon the upper run of the conveyor belt 1. The screen drum 6 is rotated insuch manner that the peripheral speed thereof is substantially the sameas the forward travel of the conveyor belt 1. The construction justdescribed is repeated a number of times, for example, four'times, withinthe housing I0 which comprises an enclosed chamber for. all the units orstages of said mechanism. Preferably, the upper portion of the housingHJ is connected by ducts Il (one only being shown) with the lowerportion of the housing in such manner as to permit an interchange of aircurrents from the upper to the lower part of the housing withoutestablishing undesirable eddy currents.

The last stage of the lap forming machine is different from thepreceding stages in that a longer conveyor apron l2 receives the furfrom the screen drum I4 (which drum may be the same in size and form asthe screen drums 6),

and delivers the lap tothe sliver forming mech- The screen drum |4` andthe apron I2 are drivisV also `a divergence from the preceding V- stagesofthe lap forming mechanism, in order "thatthe speed of movement of thematerial coming` from thelast'stage of -theflap forming'machine may beincreased or decreased," relative tothe speed of movement of thematerial through the otherV stages of 'this n'lacl'llne'in'- order toprovide a thick i en through variable speed mechanism I5, whichA orthinllap according to the wishes of the vopv A'cc'i'mpositionandfcoajted kwith means of the tension .nuts 28 which force the tensionbars outwardly on the tension stub bolts 29.-'Whi1e the. continuous bandis herein shown,

it is to be understood individualfbands' maybe satisfactorily used. l tf f y y A pair of vibration rods and 3| `(see.Figs. 3

and 6) extendcrosswise of the-bed of the ma-I chine above andbelow 'thebands- 22.v Thesev vibration rods are provided with band engagingmembers-32whlchmaycomprise a pair of washers having anelliptical'opening so. as to be4 ad justed crosswise of the.vibration'rods .and-to engage" the edges .of the bands 22 at one pointSo'thattheband is free to..vbr'ate on each side of that point.Thelreason for the crosswise adjustment'offthemembers `32 is to adjustthese memberstotake carefcf any irregularity ofthe edges vofthebands A22`which mayor may not Vall lie in a common plane. After the-members 32are properly adjusted, both; transversely andl vertically, they areclamped in position 'bylock nuts 3l onvibrationrods 30 and 3|. Atsuitable the artis-'satisfactory forthis use.

` This'fapromIz passesovera driven :rollIB in*k an inclinedupwarddirectionlthroughan opening@ II in-,the housing.,||| overa supporting-roll I8 to a pair. of adjustable rolls VI9'and 20. vThe rolls I9 and 20are adjustable -vertically ine'order to control v`the vangle atlwhichthelap is presentedv to the roving forming-machineeC. I'Theapron I2`continues beneathwthe bed of the roving or sliver Vforming machineCovera return 'driven roll l2|, and backto the roll I6 through anfopening 23inthehousing` I0. The rolls 20 andl2| are adjustablev beneath the bed of`the iroving.

forming machine C in order tocontrol the distance between this bed andthe conveyorapronl |2,the purpose of which will be explained morespecifically in connection with the` description of the Voperation ofthe roving forming machine. `The roving forming machine C comprises aVbed of stretched steel bands v22 set edgewise to the verticalin s'uchmanneras to comprise ar bed in thev formof-a grating extendingsubstantiallythe width of the conveyor belt I2.-` These steel bands 22may be of various widths and lengths and may be spaced various distancesapart bearing in mind that the length, breadthV and thickness of thebands` should be considered relatively to the period of. vibrationselected. The dimensions herein given have been found to operatesatisfactori1y,'but it is to be understood that all 'f of thesedimensions may be varied in ac"- cordance with the requirements of theresults desiredfor which the machine. isdesigned. A machine which wasoperatedv satisfactorily comprised a bed of thirty steelbands 'oneand-onehalf inches wide and twenty-'five thousandths of an inch thick.

were approximately eighty-four, inches from center of anchorage toanchorage.

In the construction: herewith.. illustrated, the individual bandscomprise loops of one continuous steel band. The end ofthis band isanchored at 24 to a steel frame 25, preferably made of I'beams ofsuilicient strength Afor the'purpose intended, and is then looped aroundcylindrical tension bars 26 (see Figs. lv-b and 4) and continues over aplurality of these bars to the terminal anchorage 2l.` The terminalanchorage 21 is also provided on the steel frame 25. .The anchorages 24-and 21 x the bandin position described,a`t the right side of themachine and:

These bands were spaced apart substantially one-inch betweenv the bandsand intervalstensions springs '35 extend between the vibration rods 30and 3| 4tcp/draw these rods to gether,soxthatzthemembers 32 are heldinintimatecontactwiththe edges of the steel bands 22. As isiliustratedinFig. lll, the position of the rods 30 and-3| maybe changed as desired.

The.` vibration rodV 3|l-is'` connected with a Syntron. vibrator 36,/Vof the vcharacter previously thelowcrtvibration rod3| is connected withanother similar Synt-ron vibrator at the *left side of the fvrna'chine.4The wiringof the ,Synv n. tron vibrators is. such that when thefvibratoro on Vthe right tends to pull :the vibration'rod 3G toward thevibrator,,thevibrator 31. on the left likewise tends to pull the tension rod3|toward the vibrator on the leftthus twisting the bands so that tensionthereon rmay be produced by bymeans ofestablishing alturningmovementaroundV the neutralaxisk of the bands. Preferablyftheelectricalcircuit connecting the Syntron" vibrators is in' accordance with thediagram in Fig. 9 herewith. `Since the symbols of the diagramwillbe'clear to those s killed' in the electrical art,further description'isbelieved not? to be necessary of this feature of the' device. -1

In order to' control the character of the twist l when the bands arevlbrated,- it i's desirable to tension one edgeof certain bandsdifferently from the other edge. 'Such variable tensioning raises orlowers the axis of oscillation of such a tensioned band, for example;referring to Fig. 11, the bands v22---a are tensioned equally on bothedges thereof and the oscillation axis X is located substantially 'inthe middle of the'band. In thek bands 2li-fb, Vthe upper portions ofthese bands are tensioned higher thanthe loweredges thereof, thusestablishing` thefvibration axis Y 'as nearer to the upper edge of theband. `It isito be understood that the full lines in Fig. 11 indi` catethe extreme position of the twisting of vthe bands at one point in thecycle rand that the dotted lines indicate theextremeposition of thebands when twisted in the opposite `direction atV another point in thecycle. It is also -to be understood that the amount of torsionor twistshown in Fig. l1 is greatly exaggerated, in order to more clearlyillustrate the invention. o It is to be under-V stood that the amount ofoscillation indicated in Fig. 1l is cna cross-section takensubstantially midway between the vibrating rods 3D and 3| and theforwardend of the machine where the bandshave' a more individual freedomof movementl than is permitted where the vibrating rods and 3I connectwith the band.

The condition illustrated by Fig. 11 with the normalaxis X below theunevenly tensioned band axis Y is a condition which is particularlydesirable :where the lap is fed vto the bands from the upper edgesthereof. In 'this condition,r there is a tendencyfof the bands tothrow-down the vmaterial of the lap and hold it within the zones ofoscillation produced by the differential tension.

Preferably, an apron 38 is mounted above the vibrating bands with thelower run thereof moving in the same direction as the apron I2 be-Vneath thebands. The apron 38 acts more iespecially as a covering memberwhich, to a subf rods than to the upper ends of the bands.

ing maker. The adjustable driving roll 2| for the apron l2 is locatedslightly beyond the cen.

bands 22.

stantial extent, retains the'vibrated air'between the bands and'therebyallows'the material'betweenA thebands to `be subjected both ,by themechanicalimpact of the Vibrating bands against the material and by theair currents' produced between the bands by the vibration thereof.

. The character of the l"oscillation of the ,bands may alsobe controlledby.` weights 39 illustrated in Fig. '1. These weights comprise splitbolts made from half rounds vofbrassl .or-other metal- (Figs.'7 and 8)andr are held in place by nuts 40 and 4I which clamp ori-,each 'side ofthe .bands 22. `The major portion of the weightIIII may be above theband, asfillustrated in Fig. 7, orthe l weightsjmay be so adjusted as topresent the major portion ofO the-'weight below the band, as in Figg. Itis understood that these half rounds fare screw threadedthroughout theirlength and by adjusting the vnuts "and14l on-fthe screw threads, thecenterof mass of the weights may be positioned transversely 'of thebandsin any position desiredQ Where the center of mass of the weights 39 ismoved toward one side of the band, the axis of oscillation of the bandmoves'tiward theopposite side, While thev amplitude of the edge of theband toward which the centerof mass has been moved, will be increased.For example, as illustrated in Fig.v 7, vthe axis of oscillation of theband will be moved downwardly as at M while where the weightis largely"beneath the band, the

axis of oscillation will be moved upwardly as at characteristics. Theseweights as illustrated. arev approximately three' inches in length.

Fig. 12 is a diagrammatic view similar` to that. shown in Fig.` 11and-illustrates the effective oscillation of the bands With'the loweredges of al ternate 'bands tensioned to a higher degree than the upperedges thereof whereby v the axis Z of. -these differentially tensionedbands l2-cis moved below the axis X ofthe evenlytensioned bandsA 22-a.This type oftensioning, namely, with the lower edges `tensioned greaterthan the upper edges is desirable where the lap isy fed to the bottom ofthe band table and is carried upward between the bands for treatment.

The inclination of the steel `ba`nd .,bed to the horizontal ispreferably abouti15.. This inclination may be adjustable in order.to-obtain further i control of the material passing through the rov-These pairsof conveyor belts 42-44 at their outer -ends alternate inupper and lower positions for conveying the. roving .-to the condenserD, whichis constructed in the usual manner with upper andj lower banks.`This `condenser is standard machine in the textile art known as theBarker Rubb condenser. If the condensing action of one unit of condenseris not sufficient forV thefpurpose desired, the rovingsmayV beconvducted through one or. more additional similar condensers, in orderlto secure the degree of compactness to the roving which the operatormay desire. 'I'he pairs of conveyor belts 42 and 44 are supported byrolls 45, 46, 4'I, 48, v49, 50, 5I, 52, 54, and 55. Preferably, all ofthese rolls are driven in order that the belts may travel at theproperspeed. The'travel of the belts is in accordance with the arrowsillustrated in Fig. l-b.

The'roving is carried between the pairs of belts,

both of which travel at substantially thersame speed in order to carrythe roving forward with the least amount of disturbance. Preferably,each pair of. conveyor belts 42,'44is separated `from the adjacent pairsof conveyor belts by means of separation discs 56, 51, 58, 59 and 6U.These separation discs perform two functions, first, of maintaining theconveyor belts 42 and 44 in their proper positions and secondly -ofpreventing any slight portion of fur from overlapping between adjacentconveyor belts. These separation discs may be suitablymounted uponshafts in such manner as to revolve freely. In case of the movement ofthe belts not being sufficient to properly .revolve these discs, theshaftscarryng the discs may be rotated.

In the operation of thezpresent device, the fur or other material is fedinto the weighing machine A which feeds predetermined amounts ofmaterials per given period of time to the lap forming machine B. Thelast stage of the lap forming machine B being adjustable as to speed ofthe conveyor belt I2 and the screen I4, the

operator may cause either a thin or a thick lap to issue from thismachine. While it is possible to satisfactorily feed the lap from thelap forming machine B to the roving maker C above the bandtable,preferably, the feed is from beneath the band table. The rolls I9 and 20are adjustable vertically relative to the conveyor I2 in order toIchange the-angle at which the lap approaches the band table and also todetermine vtl'iespa'ce between the upper run of the belt I2 andtheunderneath edges of the bands 22. The

l' space between the bands 22 and the upper run base of the wedgeadjacent the roller 20.

of the conveyor apronI I2 preferably iswedge shapedl between the rollers2| and 20 with the AS the lap is brought into the influence of thevibrating bands as it iscarried over the' roller 20, the vibration ofthe bands, providing 'they are set in accordance withfthe diagrammatictensioning scheme illustrated in Fig. 12, tends to pick up the lap fromthe conveyor belt and to separate it into longitudinally extendingbodiesv whichV lie between adjacent vibrating bands, y

TheV positionof the roller'2l relative to the maximum oscillationorvibration of the bandsiwh'ich normally occurs adjacent themid portion'of the free'vibrating'part of the'bands) is of someim'iy i portance inthat there'is a tendency "of the `maf terial to lrnovedownwardly toward`the Vzonejof.

maximum vibration,A and beyond this point there l is .a slight retardingaction tothe y downward movement of the material.` The further theroll-r er 2| is positioned beyond this maximum "zone,

Y the more retarding actionoccurs. The amount of the retarding action isrelated to the degree of vibration of the bands. There is also atendency of the rovings to drop down onto the apron i table, power meansto cause "saidy bands to'viafter the pointof maximum vibration is past.;

Theapron I2 running over the roller 2l estab-v lishes the point wheretherovings may bere-f movedfromthe roving maker and'be carried yto y theconder'iser."V Tovr this end, rollers 45 and'49 carrying'the pairs ofconveyor belts 42 and 44g are placed closely adjacent to the roller 2|so ,that'the roving leaving the belt VI2 as it DaSSes over roller 2l isimmediately picked up bythe conveyor belts 42 and` 44 which carry theroving to the condenser.

'I'he material comes into lthe vibrating band lap of material-the bersextending'in vdifferent directions as a miscellaneous mass of viibrousrna` Yterial As soon as the 4material entersthe `vi brating band table,it is divided into longitu' dinal strips correspondingtothe spacesbetween the vibrating bands. The vibrating bands strike andthe'vibration of the bandscreates lair cur` rentsapparently tend torotate o'r swirl some'- table from the belt l2 in substantially aflatloose A y. portions ofthe material asa mechanical action rents.V Withthe'ban'ds tuned as indicated diai Y grammatically in Figs. A11 and l2,these air cur.-

what with'the axis'of rotation of the air currents extendinglongitudinally of the band table.

The result of the mechanicalaction of the bands 1 and of the rotatingair currents on the loose material is to tend to orient individual iurbers or other short iibers so thatthe majority ofthese bers extendlongitudinally of the mass of material between the vibrating bands.".ihisorien-4 tation of the bers may be also brought about by themovement of the liber mass lengthwiseoff the bands-while thebers varesuspended 'infa' more or less free state,'and such movement tends todraw the fibers into a position substantially-V parallel to' thedirection of movement.

The f Variousr factors operating upon theber Y- Y are extremely complexand the foregoingv theory is offered as an explanation of theresultiob-'1 tained, which is that as the rovings leaverthe j' slivermaker machine', the loose mass of material which enteredf into thesliver maker has been fil) compacted into masses known in the art asrov: Y

ings. These rovings are carried from theroving making machine C to thecondenser vD where the usual condensing action is applied to the rovingsand as the rovings leave theconden'ser, they are sufiicientlycompactedgto `be wound` on spools62' or otherwise packaged as anarticlegof'u .ff

manufacture for use in the textile art to which suchrovings are adapted.v

When fur slivers have 'been heretofore made by carding, the bersarefbroken and stretched or in: other words, seriously damaged because jlof the action of the card wires in tearing through the mass. Inaccordance with the present invention the vbers are not torn or brokenso condition."k Such iibers are referred to in claims'a's full llengthbers. y i y It is to be understood that the disclosure herewith is apreferred form of theinvention, but it is also' to be understood thatthis 'disclosure ,the

is vto'be consideredY as illustrative and not tog. Y be construed in thelimiting sense since the inf vention may be 'embodied in other formswith-f out departing `from the spirit thereof.

WhatIclaim is: ...y

` 1. In a machine .for'making slivers, the com-l f bination of aplurality of tensioned bands spaced apart horizontally vwithv the bandsset vedgewise in substantially vertical planesv to. form a bandbratewith atwistingfmotion, `means to feed loose textile'material tosaid band;A table, and conveyor i means to receive rovings producedbythev operai tion of saidband table. 1 y

2.. In a machine for making slivers, the com` bination of a plurality ofltensioned 'smooth me-V tallic bands-spacedapartvhorizontally withtheVbands A set edgewise in substantially lvvertical planes tol form 'aiband table, powermeans tov cause said bands to vibrate with'a twistingmo-f tion, means tovfeed `loose textile` material in the formof` a(lapgto'saidv band table, said band table 1 being inclined downwardrelative to the movef ment of said material,` and conveyor means toreceive rovings produced bythe operation `oi' said band table,

3. AIn a device for making slivers, thecombination of a b and tablecomprising a plurality of bands normally disposed edgewise insubstantially vertical'planes and Vspaced apart to provide pas-`sageways between said-banda'a supporting frame,

means mounted upon said supporting frame to subjectfsaid bands tovtension, power means connected with said bands and adapted'to vibrateeach band with a-twisting motion, means to supy ply loose textile fibersto saidband table, and

means' toreceive individual rovings produced. from said textile material'by ,the vibration of said bands. f

4. In a device'for making slivers, the combinationof a band 'tablecomprising a plurality of bandsnormally disposed edgewise 4insubstantially vertical planes and spaced apart -to provide passagewaysbetween said bands', la supporting-trarne, means mounted upon saidsupporting frame .tol

subject 'saidvba'nds to lengthwise tension,V power meansjoonnected withedges with bands inter-v mediate ,the ends thereof land adaptedtovibrate eachV band with a twistingmotion, means to supply loosetextile bers in the form of a lap tosaid band table, and rmeans toreceive individual rovingsproduced from said textile material bythevibration of said bands. y leach .edge of an individual band,` meanstosupg-V portsaidband table in an inclinedposition with` the forward endo f said table comprising theA higher inclnatiom ay Yconveyor apronadapted to deliver loose textile material to said band table, y powermeans operatively connected with vsaid bands to cause saidbandstovvibrate with atwist`y j.

ing Vmotion, and` means to receive rovings produced. by the operation ofsaid band table.'

6. Ina machineiforA making slivers, the comthat the'iibers" retaintheirnatural length and bination of a plurality of'spaced apart metallictical planes to form a band table, tensioning means for said bandsconstructed and arranged to be capable of'applying a differentlongitudinal tension to each edge of an individual band to displacetheneutral axis of torsion of such band, means to support said band.table in an inclined position with the forward end of said tablecomprisingffthe higher inclination, a conveyor apron adapted to deliverloose textile material to beneath said band table, power meansoperatively connected with thev edges of said bands to cause said bandsto vibrate with a twisting motion, and means to receive rovings producedby the operation of said band table. Y

7. In a machine for making slivers, the coml bands mounted edgewise Vinsubstantially verj bination of a band table comprising a plurality Y ofvmetallic bands mounted edgewise to the horizontal and inclined in adownward direction from the feed endpof said band table, means toindividually tension said-bands in such manner that certain of saidbands may have the edges thereof stressed at different tensions, andreciprocating power means operatively connected to each of the edgesofsaid "bands and adapted to twist said bands whereby when the upper edgesof said bands are moved in one direction the lower edges y of said bandsare moved in the Opposite direction to produceV said twisting motion tosaid bands.

8 lIn a machine for making slivers, the combination of a band tablecomprising a plurality of metallic bands mounted edgewise to the hori- Yzontal and inclined in a downward direction from the feed end of saidband table, means to individually tension said bands in such manner thatalternate bands may have the edges thereof stressed at differenttensions, and reciprocating power means operatively connected to each ofthe edges of said lbands and adapted to twist said bands wherebyV whenthe upper edges of said bands are moved in one direction the lower edgesof said bands are Vmoved in the opposite direc-` tion to produce atwisting motion to said bands, said power means being connected to saidbands adjacent one end of the band table to allow free vibration tothemajor length of 'said bands to obtain different vibrations fromalternate bands.

9. In mechanisms for forming rovings, the combination of means to feedtextile material to a lap forming mechanism comprising a plurality thescreen drum of the last stage, variable speed4 mechanism for controllingthe speed of travel of the periphery ofthe screen drum of the last stageand said conveyor, a roving maker compriswise to the horizontal andspaced apart to comprise a band table, means to cause said bands tovibrate with a twisting motion on a substantially stationarylongitudinal axis and to distribute a lap from said conveyor intoindividual rovings corresponding in number to the spaces between thesaid bands.

l1. Mechanism for making rovings from fur or the like comprising meansto feed loose fur in predetermined amounts to a lap forming mechanismcomprising a plurality of stages, each stage being formed of feed rolls,a picker roll, a perforated drum and a conveyor, the conveyor of thelast stage being arranged to deliver a lap from the lap forming machineto a roving maker, variable speed mechanism to control the peripheralspeed of the perforated drum and the conveyor inthe last stage of themachine to control the rapidity of delivery of the lap from the lapforming machine, a roving maker comprising a plurality of stretchedmetallic bands arranged edgewise to the vertical and spaced aparthorizontally to provide 'a band table having a plurality of channelsbetween the bands, means to oscillate said bands at a rapid rate toagitate the fur delivered to said band table and cause the same to beformed into rovings, and means to deliver the rovings from said bandtable.

12. Mechanism for making rovings from fur or the-like comprising meansto feed loose fur in predeterminedY amounts to a lap forming mechanismcomprising a'plurality of stages, each stage being formed of feed rolls,a picker roll, av

lap from the lap forming machine to a roving maker, a roving makercomprising a plurality of longitudinally stretched metallic bandsarranged with their widev faces extending vertically and spaced aparthorizontally to provide a band table having a plurality of channelsbetween the bands, said band table being inclined downwardly, means totwist said bands at a rapid rate around the longitudinal axes of thebands to agitate the fur delivered to said band table and cause the sameto be formed into rovings, and means to deliver the rovings from saidband table. J

13. In a machine for forming rovings,1 the combination of a plurality ofbands under longitudinal stress set apart horizontally and arranged withtheir wide faces extending vertically, means for holding vsaid bandsunder stress, means to ing a plurality of stretched metalbands arrangededgewise to thehorizontal and spaced apart to comprise a band table,means to cause said bands to vibrate and to distribute a lap from saidconveyor into Vindividual rovings corresponding' i'n number to thespaces between the said bands.

10.'In mechanisms for forming rovings, the combination of'means to feedtextile material to a lap forming mechanism comprising a plurality ofstages of feed rolls, picker rolls and screen v drums, a delivery apronconveyor associated with the screen drum Yof the last stage, a changespeed mechanism for predetermining the speed of travel of theV peripheryof the screen drum of the last stage and said conveyor relatively to thespeed of travel offthe preceding stages of the lap forming mechanism, aroving maker comprising a plurality of stretched metal bands arrangededgevibrate said bands in such manner as to produce rapid recurringtwisting motions in- `said bands, and means to feed textile material tosaid bands whereby said material is divided into longitudinal massescorresponding to the spaces between said bands to enable the vibrationof said bands to produce' rovings from said material.

14. In a machinevfor forming slivers, the comi bination with a bandtable comprising a plurality of longitudinally tensioned bands normallysubstantially parallel and spaced apart to provide passageways betweenthe bands, means for holding said bands under stress, means to oscillatesaid bandswith a twisting motion around the neutral axes of said bands,and means to change the location of the axes of certain of said bandsrelative to the edges thereof.

l5. In a machine for forming slivers, the combination with a band tablecomprising a plurality of longitudinally tensioned bands normallysubstantially parallel and spaced apart to A,provide passageways betweenthe bands, means for hold-V ing said bands under stress, means tooscillate said bands with a twisting motion around the neutral axesosaid bands, and weights mounted on said bands to change the location ofthelaxes of certain of said bands relative to the edges thereof. A Y

. 16. In a machine for forming slivers, the combination with a bandtable comprising a plurality of longitudinallytensioned bands normallysub stantially parallel and spaced' apart to provide passageways betweenthe bands, means for holding said bands under stress, means to tensionthe edges of certain of said bands to different tension, means to4oscillate said bands with a twisting motion around the neutral axes ofsaid bands, and weights mounted on said bands to change the location ofthe axes of certain of said bands relative to the edges thereof.

17. lIn amachine for forming rovings,`means to.deliver a lap oftextilematerial to an operating tablesaid operating table comprising aplurality of stressed bands to divide said lap into a plurality ofelongated masses of textile material, means 'toV -hold said"bands understress and means to operate said operating table to subject said textilematerial tocompacting forces substantially transverse to said elongatedmasses of textile material.

'K 18. In a machine for forming slivers. the combination of apluralityof partitions to divide a mass of textile material into elongatedindividual l masses, means to feed textile material to said ual slivers.

partitions, and vibrating means to vibrate said partitions tov produceair currents to sustain said masses and to subjectsaid individual massesto compacting forces while said individual masses are sustained by saidcurrents to cause the elements of said masses to cohere togethersuiciently to constitute slivers.

19. In a machinefor forming slivers. a plurality of flexible partitionsto divide a heterogeneous mass of textile bers into a plurality ofelongated masses vibrating mechanism operative `sustained within'saidair currents, said compacting forces causing the elements of saidelongated masses to be oriented and to cohere suiciently to constitutesaid elongated masses into individ- LOUIS P. MILLER.

